Chapter 461: Shock and Change

Qingming Fortress.

Huo Lingzi was patrolling when his expression suddenly changed.

Above the sky, a green light appeared—initially just a dot, brimming with vital energy, yet in an instant it stained the entire heavens, turning the azure sky like flowing water.

One by one, plants and vines spread and grew… bringing a sense of all things flourishing.

Strange phenomena surged as heavenly dew fell.

"I… my hidden injury… it's healed!"

"Such sweet dew... carrying the vitality of heaven. I had planned to exchange it for a 'Soul-Returning Pill'—now I've saved it..."

One by one, Nascent Soul cultivators flew out, only to soon find themselves weighed down like mountains, forced to land on the ground.

"This… is the Wood Dao principle manifesting? Is this a celestial phenomenon only possible when one fully comprehends an entire Dao principle?"

"Could someone be attempting to attain Immortalhood?"

"Impossible. We outsiders, if we break through to Immortalhood in this realm, would be eternally suppressed—or even struck down by heavenly thunder!"

The Nascent Soul cultivators were all baffled.

Only Jiao Chi's eyes lit up: "Unless… it's a native! The flower-wood slave of the Emperor's Son!"

"The slave of the Black Dragon Emperor's Son… is already ascending to Heavenly Demon?"

The soldiers exchanged uneasy glances…

…

Whoosh!

At Fang Xing's location, the influence of the Wood Dao principle grew even denser.

Vines of emerald green spread everywhere, countless flowers bloomed from the soil, yet patches of rotting marshland also emerged.

"The Wood Dao principle is not merely vitality… it also contains decay and death, the cycle of withering and renewal…"

Fang Xing sighed silently.

The laws of heaven and earth are never independent—they form a single whole.

With his current mastery over the Space-Time Dao principle, comprehending the Wood Dao principle was merely a natural progression.

But he did not delve deeper; after all, greed leads to indigestion.

At this moment, the Wood Dao principle surged like a vast emerald rainbow, or a green dragon, crashing down.

Duo Mi's cave shattered instantly; a young flower-wood maiden flew out.

Her body melted within the emerald radiance, then rapidly reformed…

'This physique, though still inferior to my Black Hole body, has improved beyond recognition.'

Fang Xing sighed silently as he watched the strange phenomena fade, and Duo Mi, now fully established in the Heavenly Demon realm, landed gracefully.

"Congratulations… you've reached the Heavenly Demon realm. Your lifespan is now infinite."

Fang Xing smiled.

"Duo Mi will never forget my Lord's great grace. Please grant me soul enslavement…"

Duo Mi's face took on a touch of sanctity as she slowly knelt.

Even if she had ascended to Heavenly Demon, she was still only at the first level—still no match for the Black Dragon Emperor's Son.

"Oh? For you to say this… actually surprises me."

Fang Xing was momentarily stunned.

Can one become a dog and develop Stockholm syndrome?

Still, he did not refuse.

He had refrained from enslaving her before, fearing it might hinder her potential.

Now that she had ascended to Heavenly Demon, it was time to add another layer of control.

Otherwise, even she herself would never feel at ease.

…

Several days later.

Fang Xing, accompanied by Duo Mi, began patrolling the various regions of Wu Jie Mountain.

Though the Nascent Soul cultivators of Qingming Fortress dared not complain about his generous aid to the natives, they relayed the news into the Grand Void Illusion.

Fang Xing had no intention of explaining.

After all, Wu Jie Mountain had already tacitly acknowledged Qingmu Realm as his domain—he could do as he pleased.

In truth, Fang Xing had long decided: the tiger would not leave its den.

Until he himself achieved Heavenly Demon, he would remain within these Nascent Soul-level secret realms.

"The flower-wood race… is a race with immense potential. I have great faith in your future, Duo Mi. Keep striving."

After inspecting a mine, Fang Xing said to Duo Mi beside him: "I will entrust most of my affairs in Wu Jie Mountain to you… making you my full representative."

He had little interest in mundane matters; he only wished to seclude himself and deeply contemplate the Space-Time Dao.

Of course, once you're in the martial world, you're bound by its rules.

Since he had enjoyed the benefits of Wu Jie Mountain, he must shoulder its responsibilities.

All Fang Xing could do was transfer this duty to his most loyal soul servant.

Indeed, if Duo Mi lacked Heavenly Demon power, she couldn't even manage the affairs of Qingmu Realm.

Such is reality!

"Hm?"

At that moment, Fang Xing's Black Hole power swept over a certain spot, and a cold smile appeared: "Remnants of the Green Emperor Palace… still dare to come? Wait… no…"

His expression changed as he suddenly remembered.

Most of the Green Emperor Palace's power in Qingmu Realm had been shattered by me within the Heavenly Demon Eight Array.

So who is appearing this time? Could it be reinforcements from the Green Emperor Palace?

But…

The Green Emperor Palace only had one Nascent Soul overlord—the Golden Flame Marquis. Where would they find the audacity to come to Qingmu Realm?

"Trouble!"

Fang Xing instantly teleported away, his clones scattering in all directions, while he prepared to use instantaneous movement to return directly to Qingming Fortress.

A patch of void shattered, and a black longship emerged. "He's noticed!"

"Per the Master's orders, no better opportunity exists—we must strike now! Attack!"

A host of peculiarly powerful Nascent Soul Ninth Layer cultivators swiftly decided—they were neither puppets nor soul servants, united only by absolute loyalty to the Green Emperor Palace.

One burly man summoned a green talisman, its surface crawling with blood-characters radiating a chilling, sinister aura: "Go!"

The Green Emperor Longevity Curse Talisman ignited without wind, targeting Fang Xing directly.

Even as the talisman was activated, the man rapidly aged into a decrepit old man and died, his corpse dissolving into dust within moments…

"You… will die!"

In an instant, Duo Mi appeared atop the ship, countless wooden spikes piercing down, skewering the Green Emperor Palace's death cultists.

After completing this, she could only watch helplessly toward Fang Xing's direction.

"This is…"

The moment the Green Emperor Longevity Curse ignited, Fang Xing sensed danger.

A metaphysical lock had bound him through cause and effect, fate… even deeper, more abstract connections.

Even if he teleported into the Qingyuan Great Realm, it would be useless!

In a daze, he seemed to see a towering green figure, wielding a long green sword, slashing down with overwhelming force!

That single sword could sever longevity!

"It's the Green Emperor! A Chaos Realm demon emperor, who comprehended an entire Dao principle!"

"Miscalculation… I never imagined my actions would draw the attention of a Chaos Realm being?"

Fang Xing realized with regret that his Black Hole physique was utterly useless against a demon emperor.

Even though he had long since drawn his Nascent Soul into the core of his Black Hole for protection—where even the gravitational distortion and spacetime warping could nullify or weaken half of a Heavenly Immortal or Heavenly Demon's spiritual attacks—now it was utterly powerless.

He could only watch helplessly as the sword descended, slicing into his Candle Dragon Nascent Soul!

Hummm!

A golden light appeared—the power of the 'Steal Heaven Substitute Fate Talisman,' attempting to leave a puppet behind to absorb the blow while carrying Fang Xing away.

But beneath the swordlight, the golden glow shattered instantly. Even more astonishingly, the blade's power remained unweakened, piercing straight into his Nascent Soul!

"Ugh!"

Fang Xing clutched his brow, knowing his Candle Dragon Nascent Soul had been grievously wounded.

Even his martial will had collapsed like dry grass before that swordlight.

The three levels of the spirit: Heart, Will, Soul!

The Green Emperor's Sword of Severed Longevity had already pierced through Heart and Will—and now threatened the deepest layer: Soul, the True Spirit itself, aiming to utterly extinguish all of Fang Xing's vitality.

Leaving him unable to even reincarnate his True Spirit!

But at that moment, a faint shadow of a mysterious yellow tower appeared above his True Spirit.

"Is that the Linglong Tower?"

Fang Xing's heart stirred: "So the attribute panel didn't fully consume it… at least left me something…"

Ding!

For the first time, the Green Emperor's swordlight met resistance, striking the phantom tower and exploding violently!

But at the same time, faint threads of mysterious power seeped into the Linglong Tower, acting upon Fang Xing's true spirit.

"Ah!"

Fang Xing's face turned pale, grim and unnatural, his aura weakening a thousandfold, ten thousandfold.

More terrifying still, a withered, aged aura began to emanate from him.

A Nascent Soul expert's lifespan spans ten thousand years—a vast span compared to his current state.

Yet now, Fang Xing's lifespan flickered like a candle in the wind, ready to vanish at any moment.

"Master?!"

Duo Mi arrived before Fang Xing, her face filled with deep concern.

"It's fine… I'm just about to die…"

Fang Xing's expression remained utterly calm.

He now understood what had happened.

"The Green Emperor's Longevity Spell… no wonder it's a Chaos Realm technique. Though it cannot destroy my true spirit… even its residual effects are draining my lifespan at a rate a hundred million times faster…"

Of course, even without the Linglong Tower, the Green Emperor's Longevity Spell could not kill his true spirit—after all, he still had the 'True Spirit Talisman'.

If the 'True Spirit Talisman' proved unreliable, he still had his attribute panel.

He would surely choose, in the final instant, to abandon this world and walk away.

But his current condition remained dire.

"Take me back to Qingming Fortress!"

Fang Xing spoke softly.

"Yes, Master!" Duo Mi knew this meant his condition had deteriorated so severely he could no longer afford to waste even a fraction of his strength.

Qingming Fortress, the cultivation chamber.

"The Longevity Spell… it truly is the Longevity Spell!"

In Fang Xing's hand rested the Mirror of Years; the River of Time swirled around him. Even after deploying countless secret arts and exhausting every possible method, he could only prolong his life by a few more years—a fate unbearable for a Nascent Soul overlord.

But for him, it was still tolerable.

"Still, I must first return to Qingyuan Great Realm and exact brutal revenge."

In Fang Xing's eyes burned endless coldness.

…

Qingyuan Great Realm, Tai Xu Illusion Realm.

"Black Dragon, you've returned?"

Hun Tian the Great Saint exclaimed in surprise.

A hollow, ethereal voice rang out: "And you summoned us all—what is this about?" It was Mo Wentian the Demon.

The other Celestial Immortals and Celestial Demons also treated him with great respect, for this Black Dragon's future was boundless.

"I know I am about to die…" Fang Xing's first words struck like thunder.

Second chapter later

(End of chapter)